My Bloody Choice
by Warriorcat890
Summary: Mapleshade walks in the Place of No Stars. How did she get there? Erin Hunter says her story is too dark to tell, but I beg to differ. What did Mapleshade do that was so horrible? What did she leave out when she told Crookedstar her story? The story of Mapleshade. Contains OC. Warning: Contains a lot of violence.
1. Prologue & Characters

_My Bloody Choice - Prologue & Characters_

This is a new fanfiction about Mapleshade. The Erin Hunters claim that her story is too dark and evil to be told in the form of a Super Edition. So I'm going to take a stab at it. Right now, I'm going to leave it with a T rating but I might have to change it to M for violence. I'm not sure what you would qualify has falling under T and what would go under M as far as violence goes. I'm not going to describe a cat's insides, but it might be somewhat disgusting, so I think T will be okay. You let me know.

This is written in third-person even though the title might suggest otherwise. The title will take two forms in the story... I think you'll see what I mean later on.

I don't own Warriors. Sorry for the inconvenience.

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**Prologue**

"Why did you do it, Mapleshade?" the voice inside her head asked her. "Why did you kill him?"

"Because he betrayed me," she answered.

"Why do you rot here?" the voice inquired.

"Because I am evil," she answered.

"Why do you submit to your fate?"

"How can I avoid the inevitable?" the cat returned. "How can I escape a power that is stronger than I?"

"You escaped your fate before, Mapleshade," the voice reminded. "You escaped your Clan's wrath. You survived in the hardest times when the weak would have collapsed. They would have let the 'inevitable' take them. But you didn't. You _refused_ to let it."

Mapleshade pulled all of her extremities closer to her. The darkness of the forest around her only increased. She hated having these conversations with her brain. She hated it. "When do I get to ask you questions?" she demanded in a yowl, her voice on the brink of insanity. "Why do you torment me?! _ Why?!_" she caterwauled.

"Because I am your friend, Mapleshade."

"You are not my friend! You are my enemy! You are no better than him!" Mapleshade hissed. There were many times when she longed to sink her claws into her own brain and rip off her pelt and her flesh and dig at her brain until it agreed to stop speaking to her. "Stop speaking to me!"

"I am all you have left," her brain pointed out.

"You are a virus! A terminal disease I can never be rid of!"

"Perhaps," it allowed. "But remember that I am the one who saved you. I am the one who kept you alive. I gave you the wisdom, the will, and the strength to continue on. I was your friend. I talked to you when you were all alone."

Mapleshade sighed, knowing that this was true. "I know you were there," she whispered. "I know that you protected me. I need you. I am sorry."

Her mind chuckled. "Good girl, Mapleshade. I knew that you would see reason. Now, we have apprentices to train, do we not?"

Mapleshade nodded. She rose to her paws and looked into the dark forest. Her amber eyes were now accustomed to the advanced darkness. "This is our home," she murmured. "You led us here."

Her mind hummed in agreement. "Yes. I suppose I did. Here, you can get your revenge on those who have hurt you."

Mapleshade purred at the thought. She turned to a small lake that she had been sitting my and looked at her refection in the water. Her face was horribly scarred, and her shaggy tortoiseshell-and-white pelt was horribly matted. She did not care. She lapped up a few mouthfuls of water from the stream and swallowed the bland liquid. She smiled at her own reflection, her jagged, broken yellow teeth seeming to shine against the black water. She flexed her long, razor-sharp claws before turning away from the water. Once upon a time, her image would have disturbed her, but now, she took pride in it. She enjoyed being this dark, mutilated creature.

"It shows your strength and cunning," her mind had once told her. "It shows your friends and enemies how you have endured throughout the years."

Mapleshade agreed with her mind. It was always right. It always knew what she wanted, and what she needed. Her mind was her only friend in the whole world. It protected her before, and it would protect her forever.

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**Characters**

**Mapleshade:** Mapleshade is a is a ragged, large, sturdy, thick-furred tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat with a fluffy white tail, white muzzle, scarred head, thorn-sharp claws, originally soft and sleek, but now matted fur. She also has sharp, jagged, and some broken yellow teeth and dark amber eyes. Her sister is Rosefur. Her brothers are Fallmask and Raincloud.

**Redleaf:** Redleaf is a sleek, slender dark red she-cat with green eyes. She is the mother of Mapleshade, Rosefur, Fallmask, and Raincloud. Bonefur is her mate.

**Bonefur:** Bonefur is a strong, broad-shouldered white tom with amber eyes. His mate is Redleaf, and he has four kits with her: Mapleshade, Rosefur, Fallmask, and Raincloud.

**Rosefur:** Rosefur is a sleek, red she-cat with green eyes. She has a white dash on her chest and a pink nose. Rosefur is very pretty. Mapleshade is her sister, Fallmask and Raincloud her brothers.

**Fallmask:** Fallmask is a large, broad-shouldered white tomcat with blue eyes. His siblings are Mapleshade, Rosefur, and Raincloud.

**Raincloud:** Raincloud is a dark gray tom with a scar along his right flank. Like his brother, he has very dark blue eyes. His sisters are Mapleshade and Rosefur. Raincloud is his brother.

**Rapidclaw:** Rapidclaw is a light gray tomcat with dark, emerald green eyes. His legs, muzzle, ears, and tail-tip are all a darker shade of gray than the rest of his body.

**Waterlily:** Waterlily is a cream-colored she-cat with a bright pink nose and soft blue eyes.

**Emberstar:** Emberstar is a large, golden tabby tom with green eyes. He is the leader of ThunderClan.

**Moonstar:** Moonstar is a ghostly white she-cat with green eyes. She is the leader of RiverClan.

**Greenstar:** Greenstar is a dark brown tabby tom with pale, yellow eyes. He is ShadowClan's leader.

**Breezestar:** Breezestar is a black tomcat with amber eyes. He is the leader of WindClan.

**Sunleaf:** Sunleaf is a golden she-cat with blue eyes. She is ThunderClan's medicine cat.

**Roanfur:** Roanfur is a dark red tomcat with blue eyes and a white-tipped tail.

**Branch:** Branch is a dusty brown tom

**Blaze:** Blaze is a black tomcat with a white underbelly, muzzle, legs, paws, and tail-tip

**Acorn:** Acorn is a brown tabby tom

**Nina:** Nina is a plump brown tabby she-cat. She is a kittypet.

**Uranus:** Uranus is a dark gray tomcat with hypnotizing green eyes. Former kittypet.

**Saturn:** Saturn is a golden tom with amber eyes and a white underbelly. Former kittypet.

**Flea:** Flea is a small brown tabby tom with pale yellow eyes.

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A/N: Did you like the prologue? Please leave a review and let me know! If you've liked this story and you would like to see the other ones I have written, click on my username!


	2. Chapter 1: That Will Be Me

_My Bloody Choice - Chapter 1_

This is the first chapter, and as you can see, it isn't written from Mapleshade's point of view. Instead, it is written from Redleaf's (her mother) perspective. This will hopefully give you a good idea about how other cats thought of her; she was just a normal kit longing to be a warrior and had dreams of being leader. Redleaf worries that life will only let her down and she will never accomplish her dreams, but can't bring herself to break her daughter's heart. It is then that she receives a prophecy foretelling a life of pain, hardship, and darkness in her daughter's future.

I don't own Warriors.

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**One – "That Will Be Me"**

"Maplekit!" Redleaf called from outside the nursery. "Don't wander too far off, now!" she called. Redleaf lay on her side, basking in the sunlight. Newleaf was the best time to have a litter, and her own was blossoming. With a total of four kits and the biggest litter for the last five moons, she couldn't help but feel proud of her family. She looked on fondly as her two daughters, Maplekit and Rosekit played with a small ball of moss, tossing it back and forth. Rosekit had Redleaf's looks—she was a small, lithe, dark ginger she-cat with bright green eyes. When she grew up, Rosekit would be one of the most beautiful she-cats in the Clan, Red leaf could see that. Her other daughter, however, wasn't as pretty.

Maplekit was a short, stalky, broad-shouldered tortoiseshell she-kit. Her pelt was predominantly ginger and white with some black splattered on carelessly. Her stark, white tail stuck out the most as it waved happily in the air, acting as a rudder to steady the young kit while she played. Redleaf worried about her daughter's future. Maplekit was very independent and often had dreams of becoming Clan leader. Redleaf would humor her, saying that she knew Maplekit would make a great leader, but she had her doubts. She felt guilty for feeling the way she did, but she didn't believe Maplekit would be successful. She couldn't even imagine her kit gaining any form of authority. And, as unimportant as it was, Redleaf was mostly worried about little Maplekit finding a mate.

The she-cat was not pretty. What tom would want an ugly she-cat? Redleaf felt awful for thinking of her daughter as being ugly, but she could not deny or ignore what was plainly true. Maplekit didn't look like Redleaf, or her father, Bonefur, a white cat. What would Maplekit's future hold if she did not take a mate, or become leader? Perhaps being a medicine cat would be a better occupation, but Maplekit showed no signs of swaying from her goal of power.

Redleaf yawned and stretched slowly. The greenleaf sun felt divine on her red fur. She wished that leaf-bare never existed. She wished that leaf-fall never existed either. For now, she was content where she was. In less than a moon, her kits would be apprenticed and they would be out of her fur. She would be able to move back to the warriors' den with Bonefur. Perhaps her next litter would be better.

"Mommy!" one of her kits called.

Redleaf opened her eyes to see her two sons bouncing over to her. Fallkit and Rainkit took after their father. Fallkit was the largest of the litter and had his father's white pelt, and his grandmother's deep blue eyes. Rainkit was a dark gray tom who also had the same, deep blue eyes. They were both turning into very handsome tomcats. Redleaf would never have to worry about her sons—they would be fine wherever they went. Why couldn't Maplekit be that way?

"I heard that Emberstar is going to call a Clan meeting!" Fallkit meowed.

Redleaf yawned a second time. "Were you two sticking your noses into places you shouldn't have been? How did you come about this information?"

Fallkit looked down, self-consciously. "Well, we heard Spottedfur talking about."

Redleaf shook her head at her kits' antics. "Please, you have just one moon left in this nursery. Can you please behave yourselves?" she asked tiredly.

"Yes, mother," the two toms said softly.

The queen purred, mildly pleased by their answer. She knew in her heart that they were only saying it to appease her. There would be many more expeditions before they became apprentices. They had not been caught snooping around yet, but it was only a matter of time. Once they were apprentices, their training would allow them to release their energy, and they would be less prone to get into trouble, or so Redleaf hoped.

"Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather here beneath Highrock for a Clan meeting!" Emberstar's yowl split the air. Redleaf looked up to see the golden-furred leader standing on Highrock, looking as regal as ever. He gazed down, his green eyes raking the ThunderClan camp.

Maplekit and Rosekit scampered over to their mother. "One day, that will be me up there!" Maplekit whispered to Rosekit. "I'll be Clan leader! Can't you just see it? Maplestar leader of ThunderClan!" she squeaked happily.

Redleaf looked at her two daughters sitting next to one another by her tail and sighed. She knew that one day her daughter's dreams would be crushed. There can only be one leader. The odds that it would be her were slim. She called her two sons over, and they sat next to their sisters. Today, Emberstar was making warriors out of three apprentices. She knew that one day, that would be her children. The thought of her kits being made into great warriors made her heart warm with pride.

"_Beware of the darkness,_" a windy voice whispered, making Redleaf jump. She looked around rapidly, searching for the source of the voice. "_The darkness will consume her,_" the voice said.

Redleaf dared not speak aloud; she did not want to worry her kits. _What do you mean!?_ she yowled in her mind.

"_The maple will grow strong and proud, but then, the sun will cease shining, and she will be left in the shade. There, the darkness will consume her heart and the dark whispers will control her mind._"

Redleaf's eyes widened in horror. _What do you mean?!_ she demanded, but the presence had left. Her gaze landed directly on her daughter. _What will become of you, my kit?_ she wondered. _What will become of you?_

The Clan shouted the names of the new warriors with heart and pride. Redleaf's litter joined in, yowling and squeaking away. When the ceremony was over, Maplekit let out a playful growl and tackled her brother Fallkit to the ground. "I'm going to be the best warrior in ThunderClan!" she declared, battering at her brother's face gently.

Rainkit knocked her off. "No! I will be!"

Redleaf looked on fondly as her kits played. How could her daughter ever be consumed by darkness? Sure, her expectations of life were a little high, but she was still just an innocent kit. She did not know the way the world worked yet. With time, she would gain experience and she would grow and learn like every other cat. She would be fine. A mate wasn't a necessity, and if she was happy with being a single warrior, what was the harm in it?

"You will be fine, my daughter," Redleaf whispered softly. "You will grow and be good and strong."

"Training to be strong warriors are we?" Bonefur's voice caused Redleaf to snap out of her thoughts.

She looked up as her mate was nearly tackled and mauled by his kittens. "Father! Father!" they cried happily.

Bonefur chuckled at their enthusiasm and happiness. "Yes, yes, alright," he said, pulling himself to his paws. "Great StarClan, you kits are about as fierce as ShadowClan warriors!" he purred. "I think I would much rather prefer the ShadowClan cats than getting tackled and licked to death by you four! At least with the ShadowClan warrior I stand a chance!"

The kits purred, pleased by his reaction. "We're gonna be the best warriors in the whole Clan!" Rainkit boasted, puffing out his chest.

"Yeah!" Maplekit agreed. "We'll be the most feared cats in the whole forest! We'll be so good, no one will want to fight us, because we would easily beat them in a fight!"

Redleaf watched her daughter with a smile. What was the harm in dreaming? She was just being a normal kit, wasn't she? There was nothing wrong with Maplekit. She probably had imagined the whole thing! She was wrong: she didn't need to worry about Maplekit. She would be fine.

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A/N: Did you like this chapter? Leave a review and let me know! If you've liked what you've seen here and you wanna see more, click on my username to see more!


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